Description

Reviewing 40 years of hard, empirical data, from China and India to Chile and Iraq, the authors show that poor democracies beat poor autocracies in every economic measure. In addition, the authors offer dramatic evidence that democracies are less likely to fight each other and that terrorists more often find safe haven in authoritarian countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan.

Reviews

"This valuable and timely volume obliterates the myth--beloved of dictators--that democracy is somehow the enemy of development rather than an essential ally. Here is a treasury of evidence that freedom is not only right--it works

." -- Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State

"Meticulously researched, this book makes the overdue case that democracy helps not hinders poverty reduction. It takes a well-aimed blow at the canard that poor countries need the smack of authoritarian government if they are to have the discipline to grow

." -- Mark Malloch Brown, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme

About the Authors

Morton Halperin is one of America's most respected foreign policy analysts and served in the Clinton, Nixon, and Johnson administrations. He taught at Harvard and is currently the Senior Vice President of the Center for American Progress.

Joseph T. Siegle has done extensive research pn developing countries and is the Douglas Dillon Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Michael Weinstein is Director of Programs for the Robin Hood Foundation and publishes frequently on the editorial pages of The New York Times.